Commonwealth Consolidated Acts Commonwealth Consolidated Acts(1) Where:
(a) an authority under section 41 (in this section referred to as the current authority ), other than an authority conferred by virtue of this section, is in force in respect of the Ranger Project Area;
(b) the persons on whom the current authority has been conferred (in this section referred to as the applicants ) apply in writing to the Minister, not earlier than 6 years and not later than 4 years before the expiration of the period (in this section referred to as the mining period ) during which the applicants are authorized under that authority to carry on, upon or under the Ranger Project Area, operations for mining prescribed substances or other minerals, for the conferring under section 41 of a new authority in respect of the Ranger Project Area for a further period (being a period that is not less than 7 years and not longer than the period for which the current authority was conferred) specified in the application; and
(c) the application is not deemed by subsection (6) to be withdrawn;
the applicants are entitled in accordance with this section to have a new authority conferred on them under section 41 in respect of the Ranger Project Area for a period (in this section referred to as the relevant period ) equal to the period specified in the application and commencing at the expiration of the mining period.
(2) The applicants are not entitled under subsection (1) to have the new authority referred to in that subsection conferred on them unless, not later than 9 months before the expiration of the mining period:
(a) the agreement dated 3 November 1978 entered into under section 44 of the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 between the Commonwealth and the Northern Land Council established under that Act is extended so as to apply in respect of the relevant period; or
(b) a further agreement is entered into under that section between the Commonwealth and the relevant Land Council established under that Act in respect of the relevant period (being an agreement in relation to such part of the Ranger Project Area as is or becomes Aboriginal land within the meaning of that Act).
(3) Where an application is made under subsection (1), the Minister administering the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 shall endeavour to obtain, not later than one year before the expiration of the mining period, the extension of the agreement referred to in paragraph (a) of subsection (2) or the further agreement referred to in paragraph (b) of that subsection.
(4) If the agreement referred to in paragraph (a) of subsection (2) is extended as mentioned in that paragraph or a further agreement is entered into as mentioned in paragraph (b) of that subsection, the Minister shall:
(a) as soon as practicable, after consulting with the applicants, determine the conditions and restrictions to which the new authority is to be subject, being conditions and restrictions that:
(i) subject to subparagraph (ii), include conditions and restrictions that the Minister is satisfied will ensure the rehabilitation, in the manner and to the extent provided by the current authority, of the area affected by operations carried on under the current authority; and
(ii) are not inconsistent with the obligations of the Commonwealth under the extended agreement or the further agreement, as the case may be; and
(b) as soon as practicable, but not later than 6 months before the expiration of the mining period, give to the applicants a notice in writing setting out those conditions and restrictions.
(5) Where the applicants have within 3 months following the receipt by them of the notice referred to in paragraph (b) of subsection (4) informed the Minister in writing that they wish to proceed with the application, the Minister shall, before the expiration of the mining period, by instrument in writing under his or her hand, revoke the current authority with effect from the expiration of the mining period and confer a new authority under section 41 on the applicants in respect of the Ranger Project Area in accordance with subsection (1), being a new authority that is subject to the conditions and restrictions determined in accordance with subsection (4).
(6) Where the applicants have not within the 3 months referred to in subsection (5) informed the Minister in writing that they wish to proceed with the application, they shall be deemed to have withdrawn the application and are not entitled to make a further application under subsection (1).